The state of humanitarian demining efforts was discussed at a meeting held at the Office for Mine Action of the State Emergency Service. According to Prime Minister of Ukraine Denys Shmyhal, the country has made significant progress in clearing Ukrainian land of explosive devices. At the same time, the Head of Government emphasized the challenges that still require attention.
According to him, the area of potentially mined land has decreased by more than 20% compared to the end of 2022 and currently amounts to approximately 137,000 square kilometers, mostly consisting of agricultural land. Demining operations are being carried out by the State Emergency Service, the National Police, the Ministry of Defense, and non-governmental mine action operators. The resources of 112 certified operators currently working in Ukraine — including eight foreign organizations — comprise over 9,000 specialists, 278 units of demining and earthmoving equipment, and more than 13,000 metal detectors.
During the meeting, reports were delivered by the First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Economy, the Minister of Agrarian Policy and Food, and the Minister of Internal Affairs. Participants discussed proposals to strengthen demining support for farmers.
“The State Agrarian Register should become the sole tool for coordinating compensation for humanitarian demining of agricultural land. Data must be entered into the register more promptly,” the Prime Minister stressed.
The Ministry of Defense also provided updates on demining efforts in frontline areas.
“We agreed with the ministries to redistribute responsibilities in the field of operational and humanitarian demining to improve coordination,” Denys Shmyhal noted.
Following the meeting, the Head of Government assigned several tasks to ministries and responsible officials. Among them: to accelerate the launch of a registry of areas contaminated by explosive devices and to develop an action plan for attracting international funding directly for demining activities. The Prime Minister stated that Ukraine has already formed a broad international demining coalition of over 50 countries and has secured $1.2 billion in aid for territory clearance.
“Humanitarian demining is a key element of rapid recovery. Our goal is to continually increase the pace of work to free Ukraine’s fields, villages, cities, and infrastructure from mines as quickly as possible,” Denys Shmyhal emphasized.
